Corporate Games 5k

2 5k’s down, 3 to go! I recently ran my second 5k of 2011 but this time I was actually competing for the company I work for as opposed to simply running on my own. I didn’t expect to win, but I wanted to represent us well. The course was 2 laps around a park in Ventura.

There were a lot of people running and as is typical of me, when the race started I tried to keep up with the pack, quickly tiring myself. I finally slowed down and found a rhythm and once that happens, the fatigue passes and I feel like I could run for a long time, just not at a fast pace. I finished the first lap in 18 minutes (by this time the people who had finished first and second overall had already finished the entire race!) and started on my second time around the park.

It was the first time, I’ve ever ran a 5k in the evening so it was nice and cool, there was a calm breeze blowing and I picked up my speed and made it back around to the finish line with a total time of just over 35 minutes, over a minute faster than my time at the LA 5k.  I was proud of that. Overall I came in at 200th place, but our company won top honors in the 5k getting a total of 6 gold and silver medals.

So now that I have 2 5k’s under my belt I need to plan my next one. After that one I think I’ll attempt my first 10k. I get to go to work later in the morning now so I’ve started running in the mornings a few days a week for training so hopefully that helps. Until next time – keep running!

The Los Angeles 5k

This past Saturday I ran my first 5k of the year, the Los Angeles 5k. So I have to run 4 more to meet my goal. Going into this race I didn’t have a time goal, but I did want to finish the race without having to stop running. Well, I finished the race, but I did not meet my goal and I blame the hills.

The course started off outside of Dodger Stadium near downtown LA and weaved its way through Elysian Park before finishing up back at the stadium. I expected the course to be hilly but was blindsided by the true hilliness of it! It seemed like half the course I was running uphill. I survived the hills, but somewhere between mile 2.5 and 3 I had to slow down to a walk to catch my breath. After my side-stich calmed down, I got back to running and finished in 36:08 which I was quite happy with.

My friend’s Phil and Reese (and 5,000 strangers) also ran the race, which was cool, and afterwards we went out for breakfast at this restaurant in Encino which served the most amazing pancakes and that definitely topped off the morning.

Up next is the Ventura Corporate Games 5k on April 6th!

It’s always good to have a goal

Every year it seems I try to set goals that never quite get met. This year I am determined to make my goals a reality, so I thought that if I write about them here, everyone will know about it and then I’ll have to make sure I complete my goal!

My goal this year involves running. I have made it my goal to run 5 5k’s, 2 10k’s, and then either the Camarillo 1/2 marathon or the LA Rock & Roll 1/2 marathon in October to round out the year. If I’m feeling good in September, I may do the mini-triathalon in Carpinteria, but that would just be a bonus. I’m already scheduled to run The Great Race of Agoura in March, which is a 5k, but I may run one before that in the end of February. I’ll write a post about each one so we can all keep track together and when December 31, 2011 rolls around, I am convinced I’ll be able to say, “I met my goal this year!”

5k: A runner’s tale

Yesterday I ran my first official 5k and I thought I would share a little bit about the experience. It was an early start, the alarm went off at 5:45 am jolting me out of a peaceful sleep, but I had to be at the race site for the 7 am registration (according to the website 1,000 people would be in line and you have to be registered by the 8am race start time). We arrived at sharply 7am and to our amazed eyes, there were just a few people mingling around setting up tents. Everyone must be at registration I thought. We walked over to registration and found that there was no line there either, so in less than 30 seconds I had everything I needed for the race and it was 7:02 am. Glad we got up so early.

(Before the race)

Finally 8:00 rolled around and everyone crowded into the starting block (I should mention, we were each given this thing you attach to your shoe which starts and finishes your time when you cross the line, this comes into play later) and the announcer counted down 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 GO! And we were off like a herd of cattle being chased by a farmer with a stick. I wove my way through the runners until things started clearing up. Upon reaching the first turn I thought I was near the front of the pack until I rounded the turn and realized a huge group was already making the next turn way ahead of me!

Just after I reached the half-way point and I was passed by a guy running the 5k in a dog suit, just after that I was passed by a woman pushing a baby in a stroller and I have to admit that was almost enough to make me quit. I pushed on though. I passed the 2 mile marker and fatigue really started to kick in. Every step was an effort and even though I hadn’t eaten any breakfast I started to feel like I was going to vomit. Maybe I should just stop and take a quick breather or maybe I should walk a little bit, I thought. But my 2 goals entering the race were to finish in under 30 minutes and to not stop running the whole way, so I pressed on.

Finally, I rounded the final turn and the man keeping time called out 28:45 so I mustered up all the energy I could and sprinted for the finish line crossing it at 29:13 (the winner ran it in just over 17 minutes)! Yay! Before I could go pass out though, they had to cut that timer thing off my foot. The guy doing that tried to make small talk so I just told him, cut it off so I can go throw up!

I staggered over to the grass and knelt down over a big rock feeling sick when a guy came down and sat down nearby and started talking to me, so I sucked it up, acted tough, and carried on a normal conversation (and never did throw up!).

(After the race)

After I caught my breath and cooled down, Jenny and I went and ate a big breakfast to celebrate! I had met my goals and survived the 5k, next up, the LA marathon!

(not really)